Worse Than His Bite

Chapter 17: It's dinner time!

"Must've been fate then." Angus's wife remarked. "To find your mate on a random holiday with friends, the gods themselves must've planned it."

"Mate? I think we're a bit more than mates." Said Leo.

"No, mate means... have you not told him what it means?" Attention turned to Callum as his mother stared him down.

"Well, no. Not yet anyway."

"So, he doesn't know?"

"No... not technically."

"By the Gods, Callum." His mother threw up her arms in exasperation. "Why didn't you mention that sooner? There's no point in this meal if he doesn't know."

"Know what?" Phineas asked.

She glared at him, her teeth glinting in the light. "It has nothing to do with you."

"Moira!" Angus's fist came down on the table. The cutlery, plates and candlesticks leaped into the air from the force. "Don't be rude to our guest!"

The room went silent, except for the poor grandmother who was still moaning out in pain.

"I'm hungry! I'm hungry!" She cried.

"Quiet, mother!" Angus bellowed at her.

She would not be quiet. She cried and she moaned. The entire time Phineas was confused as why they wouldn't just feed her. There were plates of roast chicken, vegetables and spit roasted pork. Was the grandmother too frail to reach for her own food? Why wouldn't someone help her?

Angus rubbed the bridge of his nose, a deep frown settling on his face. "If Leo doesn't know because Callum has been too cowardly to say anything-" Callum looked into his lap in shame, "-then I guess there is no need for this dinner." He slumped into his chair and sighed. "Perhaps we can dine privately, Phineas?"

"That would be nice." Phineas said without confirming which days he was free. This family was strange.

The grandmother stood from her chair and stumbled out the room. Somehow she was able to open the great big oak doors by herself.

"Are you hungry?" Angus asked Phineas as if his mother hadn't been here two minutes prior begging for food.

The rest of the family ate in a terrible awkward silence. Neither of Callum's parents spoke to him for the rest of the meal. Leo would attempt the odd conversation starter only for it to go absolutely nowhere. The only people talking were Angus blabbering about his interest in Ancient Celtic and Druid culture and Phineas nodding along and answering his questions.

Phineas hardly ate despite the tempting food in front of him. The tension of the house caused him to lose his appetite, so he poked at his food and took ting bites as if he were a sparrow.

Eventually, he excused himself from the table and went to the bathroom. He wondered the labyrinth halls of the manor, admiring the craftsmanship once again. He wondered what the families who lived here before were like. Whether they ran down the halls in play or whether they noticed the details of the house at all since they'd probably be used to the grandeur of it all.

He wondered what Alasdair thought of this house. What games he played in these halls. Whether he ran down the halls or walked. Which sibling did he play with most. What was his favourite toy. How much of this house did he get to enjoy before he supposedly die so early in his youth.

He found the bathroom by trail and error opening the doors. He didn't really need it. He closed the toilet lid and sat on it. It was an oddly modern design for a bathroom in such an old house. There was a sink, bath, toilet and a large window that pointed out towards the vast stretches of field. It unnerved him that the window was so big and on the ground floor. Anything could be watching him from here. He sat there and thought of Sebastian. He hoped he was alright at home by himself. He would also need to call Duncan and thank him for his help.